Friday, December 16, 2011

A Gun You Gotta Have!

The .22 LCR weighs in at 14.7 ounces and has 8 holes in the stainless steel cylinder...otherwise it's the same as it's .38 and .357 brothers, including the patented Friction Reducing Cam trigger system that gives the small-frame revolvers one of the best trigger pulls I've ever felt on a revolver of that size.

The HUGE utility of the .22 LCR — and something that we've been talking about a lot on the podcasts and on THE BEST DEFENSE — is that it's a convenient, low-cost tool for practicing with a gun that for some people can be notoriously hard to shoot. Snubs are the embodiment of Jeff Cooper's "carried a lot; shot a little" dictum. But the problem is that a snubbie revolver's short sight radius, light weight and resulting "brisk" recoil make follow-up shots a bit of a challenge (LOL! With an ultralight .357 and 125-grain screamers, is that ever an understatement!).

The solution to the challenge is, as it pretty much is with all guns, to shoot them a lot. A .22 option allows you to shoot them a lot, and cheaply. I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that if you're new to CCW and think a snub revolver might be the way you want to go, I might get the .22 LCR first...no, .22 isn't the world's best self-defense cartridge, but it is substantially better than harsh language. Secondly, you will have a gun that you can shoot a lot and that you will keep even if you decide to go to a semiauto for CCW. If you feel comfortable with the .22, it's an easy transition to the .38 (which I've been carrying for a couple of months now) or the .357 version.

Secondly, a .22 revolver is a great gun in its "kit gun" role...a gun that you'll have with you in your "kit," fishing or otherwise. Recall that Smith & Wesson has made small-frame .22s described as "Kit Guns" since the 1930s. To update this concept, a .22 small, light .22 revolver is a great addition to a grab-and-go bugout bag, because if you have to grab and go, you now have a back-up gun to your primary piece, and you can easily add 100 rounds of .22 ammo to the bag. I currently have an S&W Kit Gun and 100 rounds of CCI Mini-Mag 36-gr hollowpoints in my grab-and-go bag. That gun will be replaced by a Ruger LCR .22, because I've shot the centerfire LCR a lot and love the trigger, I have extensive holster options for the platform and, hey, it's a Ruger and will probably outlast cockroaches and Keith Richards!

20 comments:

Rob Drummond
said...

Michael,This is a great idea!

When I was a kid I had (& still have) a Ruger single six which I shot so much I could pull it and point & hit what I aimed at most every time. Believe or not I actually hit a bumble bee in flight with it (winged it & it dropped to the ground so I could see I hit it...& with witnesses!). I have never been much of a stubby fan but I really like a "grab & go" gun and that old single six was as close as I have come to one. I might have to add one of these to my ever growing shot list.Rob

This pistol had helped an internal conflict buried in my head emerge fully blown, like an abrasive Athena bursting from my forehead.

I'll put it this way. I love the idea of the M&P .22lr because it makes a great adjunct training aid for my growing collection of M&P centerfire pistols. It does all the happy things a .22lr clone gun should do (except for the damnable non-optional safety, which my centerfires do not and will never have) and for my purposes, it "makes sense."

I then turn squarely around and wonder who the .22lr LCR is intended for... which I think means that I'm just not a "revolver person."

I think Ruger should have came out with this one between the 38 and 357 versions. It really allows a lot of cheep low recoil practice for the 38's. The 38 version is controllable but is not fun to shoot. .45 Colt cowboy guns and 1911's are fun to shoot and have less recoil then that 38. That said the 38 LCR is the most enjoyable and controllable of any 38/357 snubby out there. The 22 version would give people the trigger time to give confidence on the carry time with the 38/357 models. I loved the light weight when carrying my LCR. I could forget it was there....

MSRP $525, although the "street price" on the LCR series has been less. I've seen the .38s as low as the high $300s. I believe S&Ws are a couple of hundred bucks plus higher on the MSRP. The little Taurus I-frame .22 is, I believe, in the $450 MSRP range...

As to the longevity of the gun, what does the comment, "it's a Ruger" mean?

Ruger stopped overbuilding it's guns with the intro of the Little Copy of a KELTEC pistol. New Ruger's are not likely to last any longer than, say, a new S&W, I would think. Of course, almost no one will ever shoot them enough to wear them out!

I like the idea of the Little Caliber LCR. What I can't stand is the little "things" that companies want us to use as rear sights. Some say they have useless sights so "It won't snag on the draw." Which is complete BS. REAL sights don't have to sharp or gigantic.

Makes me want to shove it up the designers buttocks and pull the trigger until it goes 'click'.

What a dumb idea. Put a single/double trigger on then you have a decent kit gun. Without single action it's back to your idea of a gun you buy to practice with for a gun you carry. How many of us can afford that? I used to own a .22 S&W snubbie and it was very very useful. I used to coon hunt with it all the time back in the late seventies. A double action only .22 is just an underpowered CCW gun toy.

I sure hope Ruger can roll out more than 3 a month like they did with the Sr1911 or the Gunsite Scout. C'mon Ruger, you know that any firearm you have Michael Bane endorse on DRTV or his blog is Gunna sell like frickin wildfire. Kick it up a bit will ya.

Thanks for the insight as to the trigger. I was looking at one of my soldier's LCR .357 and was amazed at how superior the trigger was to any of Ruger's steel frame revolvers.(Guess I could have researched it, but I hate the internet when guns are concerned) Ruger's are all great workhorses, but I'm a S&W guy, and am just old enough that revolvers and plastic don't go together:-)As you said, this could be a great kit/pocket gun.(Oops, I said pocket! I hear the internet coming now!) Keep up the good work!

Excellent idea from Ruger. I hope they´ll market a .22 Magnum version as well, an even better third string defensive caliber if one has to, huh, "downsize" for lack of a better description. In the early 80´s I bought a Ruger Mk1Target auto, that gun is still with me 30 years and 10´s of thousands rounds later. It still runs like new accuracy and reliabilitywise on a more or less exclusive diet of CCI Mini-mags, with nothing but regular cleaning and tlc. Heck, even the original mag holds up! And it has seen the globe, travelling with me to some places where it was the only legal self-defense option as far as handguns go, bigger calibres being prohibited. Nope, I don´t see it as a normal option for that, but a big target pistol in .22 is still mighty comforting at night in a bad part of town bordering the jungle... at least when compared to a flashlight and loud screams alone.... :-)

My Wife = 5'0", 112lbs, 64 y.o. Trained on S&W M10, M36, M60, and M459.+ Long Guns.NRA Firearms Safety Course and will be completing Nevada CCW soon.I have been looking at an S&W Airlite 340 in 357 and an S&W Bodyguard 38. CTL Grips.Your article has now got me including Ruger's LCR-LG 5402.Will you give me a little input here. Is there one here that you would consider better all around for her size. If I was to choose the Ruger I would have to go with your suggestion for a .22LCR as a practice weapon.Anything you say will be helpful to both of us.Thanks and Regards,Bill